Yakiko Shihōin
| birthday = April 27th | age = Unknown | gender = Female | height = 5'1" | weight = 100 lbs | eyes = Golden | hair = Brown | blood type = B- | unusual features = Child-like appearance | affiliation = , | previous affiliation = None | occupation = Founder of the 1st Head of the Shihōin Clan Captain of the | previous occupation = Thief | team = | previous team = None | partner = | previous partner = None | base of operations = | marital status = Single | relatives = | education = Autodidact | status = Deceased | shikai = Hachidori | bankai = Unknown }} Yakiko Shihōin (夜気子四楓院, Shihōin Yakiko) is a former head of the and founder of the as well as a part of the originel generation of the , heading the . Once infamous as the greatest thief had ever seen, this lifestyle came to an end when she was caught by the trying to steal the Tenshiheisō (天賜兵装, Imperial Soldier Garments). Brought before the , he commended rather than punished her, gifting her the Tenshiheisō as a responsibility to uphold and instructing her to join in his conception of the Gotei 13. This event proved a turning point for Yakiko, taking the responsibility very seriously and shaping the foundations for both the and the Onmitsukidō. 400 years after the establishment of the Gotei 13 she disappeared and is assumed to be deceased. Appearance Yakiko suffers from a rare spiritual disorder, which disallows her to physically mature beyond childhood. This means that even though she was at least a thousand years old, she would still have the appearance of around 14 years old. This never really troubled her, though, since it allowed her to appear innocent and cause her opponents to underestimate her abilities. She had short, brown hair with bangs until above her eyes, except for a single long strand of hair on the right. Her eyes were golden and resonated exceptionally well with her , often lighting up when she would release it. Yakiko would often dress quite traditionally, wearing a red kimono adorned with a white flower patterns and a huge red bow on the back, together with yellow garnments underneath. She would also always go around with what appeared like standard rice sandals, but who on closer expection would reveal to be her custom blade-fitted shoewear. In general, Yakiko's outfit and pose would lead her on to be a harmless little girl, even though her personality and gaze would be cold as ice. Personality History Equipment Blade-equipped sandals: Yakiko's rice sandals are actually equipped with blades at the bottom, which she keeps sharpened with her reiatsu. She would often utilize these in battle in order to give her kicks a deadly edge. They were shown to be able to decapitate an -class Hollow with a single blow. Powers & Abilities : : Though she preferred to avoid any direct confrontation, Yakiko was an exquisite hand-to-hand combantant, so much that she converted her zanpakutō into a ribbon simply because she did not require it to be a weapon. Her small stature lended itself for an incredibly slippery and agile style of battle, dodging all attacks on her person with minimal steps until eventually she would find an opening to hit a crucial spot. In battle she would often make use of her blade-equipped sandals to deliver lethal kicks on her opponents, so much that she could behead an -class Hollow with only a single kick. In combination with her zanpakutō's abilities Yakiko would become untoucheable in battle, impervious to any possible attack while having the capacity to exploit even the smallest flaw or weakness at any given time. She had an exceptional knowledge of pressure points and could use it to instantly disable or subdue an opponent with only a few finger presses. *' ' (閃花, Flash Blossom): though it later would be converted into a technique, Yakiko's zanpakutō forwent the need for hyper-speed movement. It was one of her signature techniques, where she would seal her opponent's (鎖結, Chain Binding) and (魄睡, Soul Sleep) in two rapid attacks. The process typically happened too fast for any opponent to respond, especially given how Yakiko could in the perfect position in the blink of an eye. It was her preferred method of disabling her opponent so she could be on her way, as she was not a fan of outright killing. Her knowledge of pressure points was so great she could use Senka as a way to permanently disable an opponent from using his spiritual power, in a way that not even could relieve it. Master Assassin: Enhanced Strength: : Zanpakutō Hachidori (蜂鳥, Hummingbird) is the name of Yakiko's zanpakutō. It is quite unusually shaped in the sense that when unreleased it takes the form of a light blue ribbon which she keeps tied around her necked in a bow. Hachidori did take a more traditional form a long time ago, but Yakiko transformed it into its current state because it suited her and her lign of work more. *' :' To release Hachidori, Yakiko pulls on the bow of the ribbon and pulls it loose from her neck. The ribbon then disappears into particles. The release command is "Flicker" (閃く, hirameku). :Shikai Special Ability: Yakiko's shikai allowed her to instantly appear at any location at will, no matter the distance. When her shikai is actived, Yakiko disappears completely and cannot be detected by any means. It was surmised she resides in a seperate dimension with different rules of space and measure during this time. She can then proceed to re-appear at any given location, even across different dimensions such as the or . Once she has appeared, she can disappear just as instantly without any trouble. There does not seem to have been any kind of limitation to this power. It was this that made Yakiko renown as the most illusive thief in history. *' :' Though unseen, the himself commented on Yakiko's Bankai saying "it had the power to alter history, so she would have to use it wisely."